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Optimisation of fly ash pretreatment for mechanical strength and radioactive safety in microwave-irradiated alkali-activated materials : preliminary resultsBarbara Horvat,
Nadja Železnik,
Lara Petrič,
Sara Tominc, 2026, published scientific conference contribution
Abstract: The study investigates the optimisation of fly ash (FA) pretreatment for producing alkali-activated materials (AAMs) with high mechanical strength and reduced radioactive content. Three FA conditions were compared: as-received, sieved below 200 μm, and treated thermally at 550 °C. Both the sieving and thermal treatment removed the residual cellulose effectively, enhancing the compressive strength significantly, while the microwave irradiation improved the strength only in the as-received FA containing organic content. Sieving below 200 μm also reduced the detectable radionuclides, providing a simple, energy-efficient and low-carbon approach to synthesising high-performance, radwaste-safe AAMs. The preliminary results highlight sieving as a promising method to produce environmentally sustainable construction materials from radioactive FA.
Keywords: alkali-activated materials, radioactive fly ash, naturally occurring radioactive material, radionuclide separation, microwave irradiation, circular economy
Published in DiRROS: 15.05.2026; Views: 482; Downloads: 401
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